About Stephanie Palmer, Ph.D.
Licensed Clinical Psychologist | Austin, Texas Autism & ADHD Evaluations | Couples Therapy | Telehealth
I'm a licensed clinical psychologist with over 20 years of experience, and I built my practice around a simple belief: understanding how your brain works shouldn't feel clinical, cold, or reductive. It should feel like finally being seen.
I specialize in comprehensive autism and ADHD evaluations for adults — particularly those who have spent years wondering why life feels harder than it looks like it should. Many of my clients are high-achieving, outwardly capable people who have quietly struggled for a long time. They've adapted, compensated, and pushed through — often at significant personal cost. A thorough, thoughtful evaluation can offer something they may never have had before: a clear, affirming explanation of how they're wired, and a roadmap for what to do with that knowledge.
My approach is neurodiversity-affirming, strengths-based, and collaborative. I don't evaluate people to label them — I evaluate them to understand them. Every report I write is designed to be genuinely useful: to the person sitting across from me, to the people in their lives, and to anyone who supports them professionally or academically.
In addition to evaluations, I offer individual therapy, couples therapy using the Gottman Method, and equine-assisted psychotherapy. My work spans a range of life experiences, including infertility, life transitions, grief, burnout, and identity — areas that often intersect meaningfully with late autism and ADHD diagnoses.
I see clients both in person in the Austin, Texas area and virtually. Through PSYPACT, I am authorized to provide telehealth evaluations and therapy in 43 states and jurisdictions, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. If you're unsure whether your state is included, feel free to reach out.
My Background
I earned my Ph.D. in clinical psychology and trained at some of the country's leading academic medical centers, including the USC/Keck School of Medicine's Children's Hospital Los Angeles, where I later served as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics. My clinical training also included the Family Medicine Residency Center at California Hospital Medical Center and the Family Stress Center in North Hollywood, California.
I am a Gottman-trained couples therapist, trained in a research-based approach to relationship health, communication, and recovery from relational trauma.
Before building my private practice, I spent years working in high-acuity pediatric and family medicine settings — which means I bring a medically grounded, whole-person perspective to everything I do, including the way I think about neurodevelopment across the lifespan.
Who I Work With
My clients are adults who are curious about their own neurotype, often for the first time. They may have been diagnosed with anxiety, depression, OCD, or burnout, but sense that something more fundamental is going on. They may have children who were recently identified as autistic or ADHD and are now wondering about themselves. They may simply have reached a point in their lives where they want answers.
I also work with parents and children who are in search of a path to suport learning differences.
In therapy, I help a couples navigating communication challenges, conflict, or disconnection, including many neurodiverse couples where one or both partners are autistic or have ADHD.
My Philosophy
I believe that getting an evaluation — or starting therapy — takes courage. I try to make that process feel as safe, clear, and human as possible. My work is collaborative by design: I treat clients as the experts on their own lives, and I see my role as helping them make sense of patterns that may have been confusing or painful for a long time.
If you've been wondering whether an evaluation might help you understand yourself better, I'd gently encourage you to reach out. You don't need to have it all figured out before we talk.
(512) 516-9958 | support@stephanie-palmer-phd.com Schedule a Consultation →